RT Journal Article
T1 Avian regulation of crop and forest pests, a meta-analysis
A1 Monteagudo, Navila
A1 Rey Benayas, José María
A1 Andivia Muñoz, Enrique
A1 Rebollo, Salvador
AB Background: Birds have been shown to reduce pest effects on various ecosystem types. This study aimed to synthesize the effect of birds on pest abundance, product damage and yield in agricultural and forest systems in different environments. Our hypothesis is that birds are effective pest regulators that contribute to a reduction in pest abundance, enhancement of yield quality and quantity and economic profit, and that pest regulation may depend on moderators such as the type of ecosystem, climate, pest, and indicator (ecological or economic).Results: We performed a systematic literature review of experimental and observational studies related to biological control in the presence and absence of regulatory birds. We retained 449 observations from 104 primary studies that were evaluated through qualitative and quantitative analyses. Of the 79 studies with known effects of birds on pest regulation, nearly half of the 334 observations showed positive effects (49%), 46% showed neutral effects, and very few (5%) showed negative effects. Overall effect sizes were positive (mean Hedges’ d = 0.38 ± 0.06). A multiple model selection retained only ecosystem and indicator types as significant moderators.Conclusion: Our results support our hypothesis that there is a positive effect of avian control of pests for each analyzed moderator and this effect was significant for both ecological and economic indicators. Avian regulation of pests is a potential effective approach for environmentally friendly pest management that can reduce pesticide use regardless of the context of implementation.
PB Wiley
SN 1526-498X
YR 2023
FD 2023-03-07
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/88251
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/88251
LA eng
NO Ministerio de Economía y Competividad (MINECO)
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICIN)
NO Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid
NO Universidad de Alcalá
DS Docta Complutense
RD 7 abr 2025